Join us as we chronicle the lives of East Village red-tailed hawks, Christo, Dora, and Amelia, as well as other New York City wildlife.

Thursday, October 19, 2017

Governors Island 2017 - Part 3

My time on Governors Island during the month of August was dominated by nesting Yellow-Crowned Night Herons. I've never seen them anywhere else, so they are particularly special to me. This year, the nest yielded four youngsters, seen below.

For such large birds, they were difficult to see, especially once the young started branching. Here is some video of the nestlings:

One afternoon, one of the parents was out in the open on a nearby building.

I love the way they move, slowly creeping, as can be seen in this video:

By the end of the month, the chicks had fledged to parts unknown, but I found one young heron at a puddle on the opposite side of the island. I suspect it probably is one from the nest, but could not be certain.

Herring Gulls also nested on the island and I enjoyed seeing the adults showing the kids the ropes. Below, a young gull snaps up a crab that was brought in by the adult on the right.

Nearby, another gull ambitiously downed a much bigger meal.

Another young gull found a ginkgo leaf, which it proceeded to fly around like a little orange flag.

Governors Island is a good place to see Mockingbirds and listen to them practice their repertoire.

Here is an example of a Mockingbird trying out a few songs:

Late summer is the time for insects, and insects attract predators like this Eastern Kingbird.